From Venezuela to Bolivia: a migrant’s journey to success through cheese making

At Guillermo’s artisanal cheese factory in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, the air is filled with the tantalizing aroma of freshly made grilled cheese. It is a traditional cheese from Venezuela. Month after month at his job, he transforms fresh milk into more than 1,500 units of artisanal cheese that he then sells to a growing clientele across the country.

“We are prepared to work, integrate into the local economy and improve it,” says Guillermo, emphasizing the positive contributions that migrants they do in their new communities.

Guillermo’s life took a big turn when he left Caracas in 2017 worried about his safety and arriving in Bolivia with only two suitcases. At age 50 he started again in Santa Cruz, a vibrant industrial city. “I had to reinvent myself,” he remembers. At first working long hours at a technology company was a real challenge, but then his love for Bolivia began to blossom. “Now it is my second home.”

Trained as an electronic engineer, Guillermo never imagined that he would live outside of Venezuela. After working for four years in the technology sector in Bolivia, in 2021 he ventured to launch Delicatessen El Ávila, his home goods business that eventually led him to cheese making during the challenging COVID-19 pandemic. “I noticed that there were no Venezuelan cheeses in this area and I began to experiment with different recipes.”he explains.

Guillermo’s business skills, along with the cheese-making techniques that he acquired on his own, allowed him to launch his new venture, which was not merely commercial but also related to family life and his cultural heritage, and in which It now employs four fellow migrants. His late mother was originally from Bolivia, and through her cheese-making work, she continues her legacy while preserving Venezuela’s culinary tradition.

A vision for the future

As for the future, Guillermo plans to expand his operations beyond Bolivia, creating more job opportunities for both local residents and migrants, since he believes that migrants provide very valuable skills and strengths and therefore They must be considered as true human capital and not as a burden.

“My goal now is to grow the company and employ more people. “I want to show that we have talent and experience and that not everything is limited to low-paying jobs.” His business currently supplies several restaurants and 35 supermarkets throughout Bolivia, and also offers online delivery.

Guillermo’s business not only creates new opportunities for himself but also for other members of his community such as Carlos, one of his Venezuelan employees. “As a migrant, arriving in a new city can represent a great challenge. But this factory has become my home.”

The grilled cheeses are displayed on a stand.

Training and transformation

In the FEXPOCRUZ – the largest International Trade Fair in South America – Guillermo shows his handmade cheeses to potential customers from all over the world. Its queso parrillero – a white, salty cheese similar to Venezuelan paisa cheese – comes in seven flavors and is set to expand to other varieties like ricotta and mozzarella. “This is a great opportunity for us, it opens doors to new markets in other countries,” he says passionately.

With the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Guillermo and 22 other migrant entrepreneurs shared a stand at this trade fair that attracted more than half a million visitors.

“The IOM is proud to support migrant entrepreneurs like Guillermo,” says Pamela Fernández, in charge of the IOM Office in Bolivia. “We sponsor the fair and provide training in basic business skills, marketing guidance, financial management and seed capital.”

After connecting with new clients, Guillermo’s production has almost doubled. “Migrants are not a threat. We all have dreams and capabilities and they should be considered human capital of great value for the communities that host us,” he emphasizes. In Bolivia, Guillermo has not only started a new life but is also a Platform to transform challenges into opportunities for success – both for himself and his fellow migrants.

*Gema Cortés is from the IOM press unit and works in the Office of the Special Envoy for the regional Response to the Situation in Venezuela.